Canadian Paycheque Calculator
Calculate your exact take-home pay after taxes, CPP/QPP, EI and RRSP deductions. Supports salary and hourly. All provinces. Updated for 2025/2026.
How Canadian Payroll Deductions Work
Every Canadian employee has deductions taken from their gross pay before receiving net (take-home) pay. The three main ones are federal and provincial income tax, CPP contributions, and EI premiums. Together these typically represent 20-35% of gross income depending on salary and province.
Income tax uses a progressive bracket system — you don't pay the same rate on your entire income. The first ~$16,000 is effectively tax-free at the federal level due to the basic personal amount. Federal rates then range from 15% to 33%. Provincial taxes are layered on top with their own bracket systems — which is why an Ontario resident and an Alberta resident with identical salaries have different total tax bills.
Starting in 2024, CPP2 introduced a second tier of contributions on earnings above the standard ceiling. If you earn above $73,200, you contribute an additional 4% on income up to $81,900. This calculator includes CPP2 for accurate 2025-2026 results.
Frequently Asked Questions
Your effective rate is the average rate across all your income. Your marginal rate is the rate applied to your next dollar earned. These differ because Canada uses progressive brackets — the marginal rate is always higher than the effective rate.
Bi-weekly = 26 paycheques per year. Semi-monthly = 24. Annual income is the same — but bi-weekly results in two "extra" paycheques some months, which affects cash flow budgeting.
RRSP contributions reduce your taxable income dollar-for-dollar. Contributing $5,000 to your RRSP saves you tax equal to your marginal rate × $5,000 — often returning $1,500-$2,300 on your tax return.